t was a freezing winter
night, just two days before
the year would be left
behind for a new one. The
C h e n n a i - b o u n d
Coromandel
Express
from
Howrah was speeding through
the Rambha forest area in Orissa
at 110kph.
“You don't know the chill that
night,” says Orissa Chief Wildlife
warden, JD Sharma, “but even in
that cold our person informed the
railway department.” But according to the East Coast Railway
(ECoR) the message was delivered a tad late: precisely, just after
the train ran over six elephants,
which included a calf and a
female elephant in advanced
stage of pregnancy. This brings
the toll of elephants killed by
speeding trains in Orissa to 11
last year, of which one was run
over in the same area.
Reports of elephant deaths
from the state that is home to 70
per cent of the elephant population in eastern India have become
routine. In a span of five years
300 pachyderms have been
killed. The causes include electrocution, which is rampant and
occurs when elephants come into
contact with electric wires; train
accidents; poaching for ivory;
and
revengeful
deaths caused by
man-animal conflicts,
among
others.

According to conservationist
Biswajit Mohanty, from the
Wildlife Society of Orissa, there is
no justice for elephant deaths.
Mohanty, who has filed the
largest number of Right to
Information (RTI) applications in
Orissa says that in spite of money
and resources no one takes
responsibility for these tragedies.
“Needless to say, there is no
accountability among forest officers in whose areas elephants get
killed, there hasn't been a single
conviction for poaching in the
last two years,” he points out.
In every instance only the
lowest in the rung is suspended.
In the recent train tragedy while
the driver of the train was arrested, even the Divisional Railway
Manager (DRM) must be arrested, he suggests. He cites the
example of electrocution, which
kills elephants every month and
the reason 116 elephants have
died between 2001 and 2012 all
over the state.
“Electrical lines are hanging
low and are not fixed. Of the four
electricity companies in the state,
three are run by Reliance, a big
company that is feared.” He says,
“Despite demanding that managing directors be prosecuted nothing has been done. The local
linesman is suspended and this
doesn't solve the problem.”
Sharma says that whether it is
train accidents or electrocution,
the railways and the electricity
com-

panies must be pulled up and not
just the forest department. “The
Ministry of Environment and
Forest (MoEF), has sent advisories to the railways requesting
certain norms to be adhered to
when trains are passing elephant
areas. In last week's case we did
inform them that a herd would
be crossing the tracks, but apparently they needed to be informed
more than two hours prior,” he
says. The train was running at a
speed of 110kmh and it needs to
slow down to 30kmh.
“When the railway department is following this procedure
of slowing down trains in other
elephant-movement areas such
as the Rajaji National Park in

Uttarkhand/Uttaranchal, why
not Orissa?” he asks.
Further defending the forest
department, he explains that four
segments in Orissa have been
identified for trains to slow down
in, namely Keonjhar, Athgar,
Berhampur and Dhenkanal divisions. “If the railway department
follows this, there won't be elephant deaths due to accidents,”
he concludes. The ECoR authorities in turn point out the different
topography of Rajaji National
Park and the stretches in Orissa.
As for deaths by electrocution
which are rampant, Sharma
explains that under rural electrification projects – Rajiv Gandhi
Yojana and Biju Gram Jyothi

Yojana — many parts were electrified. Electricity lines are supported by cement poles that elephants rub against and these
poles need protection around
them. These lines seldom have
circuit breakers and many electricity wires sag and are at
heights that elephants come in
contact with, he says.
While elephants continue to
die in Orissa, the question
remains as to who will pay for
the straightening of these high
voltage electric lines. The state
government of Orissa has been
requesting for a grant sanction to
use Compensatory Afforestation
and Management and Planning
Authority (CAMPA) funds for

A train ran over six elephants
recently in Orissa where 300 wild
elephants have died in the last five
years. But officials just don’t seem to
care. Elizabeth Soumya reports.

PROJECT ELEPHANT

P

roject Elephant was
launched in 1992 by the
Government of India
Ministry of Environment and
Forests to provide financial
and technical support of
wildlife management efforts by
states for their free ranging
populations of wild Asian
Elephants.
The main goals of the
Project are as follows:
n Ecological restoration of
existing natural habitats and
migratory routes of elephants.
In 2007, there were a total of
110,000 km2 of elephant habitat of which 24,580 km2 were
in 64 protected areas. There
were 138 intrastate cor-

the purpose. The latest request
was made by Chief Minister
Naveen Patnaik on January 1,
2013 to Jayanthi Natrajan, Union
Minister of Environment and
Forests.
But Mohanty believes that
money isn't the problem. “Money
is squandered, despite allocation
of funds there is no change in the
situation. What is needed is
enforcement, declaring elephant
corridors does not take money
and neither does slowing down
trains,” he says.
Apart from accidental deaths:
“You must understand that
Orissa is also highly mined and
its forests are reducing,” points
out Sharma. While Bauxite and
coal mining in Orissa may have

Electrical lines
hang low and are
not fixed. Despite
demands that
managing directors be
prosecuted nothing
has been done. The
local linesman is
suspended and this
doesn't solve the
problem.
JD Sharma
Chief wildlife warden

created wealth, it has left elephant habitats depleted. The
blasting, light and noise pollution
is also disturbing elephants.
“Since the mining boom in
2004–5, elephant habitats and
corridors have been disturbed
and they are moving all over the
state,” says Mohanty. Even
though this has meant more conflict in newer areas, mining continues. In Keonjhar, an iron ore
mining area, Mohanty says that
the elephant population that was
115 about seven years ago has
dwindled to less than 40 today.
Building of irrigation canals
in elephant habitats, such as the
Rengali project in Dhenkanal also
leaves the elephants with no way
of crossing the canals and causes

fragmentation of elephant habitats. “While corridors have been
identified, they have not been
notified,” says Mohanty.
The past decade has not only
seen deaths of elephants in
Orissa, but also death and damage caused by elephants.
According to the Orissa Post,
Bijoyshree Routray, Forest and
Environment Minister, Orissa,
said in December 2012 that as
many as 569 people were killed
in elephant attacks in the State
over the last decade; 73,922.66
acres of crop was damaged and
the compensation made during
this period was `1,134.21 lakh.
In 2008, owing to the growing
man-animal conflict the state had
announced a `53 crore elephant

ridors, 28 inter-state corridors
and 17 international corridors.
n Development of scientific
management planning for
conservation of elephant habitats and viable elephant populations in India;
n Promotion of measures for
mitigation of man elephant
conflict in crucial habitats;
n Moderating impact of
human and domestic stock
activities in crucial elephant
habitats;
n Strengthening of measures
for protection of wild elephants from poachers and
unnatural causes of death;
n Research on Elephant
management related
issues;
n Increase
public conservation
education
and awareness
programs about elephants;
n Eco-development of
elephant habitats;
n Provide improved
veterinary care
for elephants.
n To have
more tusked elephants.
management plan. But Mohanty
says that compensation is tardy
and hasn't come since 2008–09 in
Dhenkanal District, despite
demanding it.
“This leads to reduced tolerance for crop raiding by elephants which in turn will heighten the ongoing man-elephant
conflict,” he says. Retributional
deaths by angry human victims
through shooting and poisoning
of elephants is not uncommon.
Mohanty is cynical about the
future of elephants in the state
and admits it is grim. Asked why
Orissa is so unsafe for elephants,
Sharma, retorts, “tell me which
state is safe”. Maybe indicating
our elephants have nowhere to
go anyway.